Danny Hillis has added a new post to the Edge forum commenting on the very Carr-Shirky exchange taking place here at Britannica. Money quote:

“Romance novels may have a future, but we are witnessing the sunset of the tome. I believe in George Dyson’s vision of a tomorrow where books of knowledge are oddities, relegated to the obscure depths of monasteries and search engines. It makes me a little sad and nostalgic. But my sadness is tempered by the sure understanding that is neither the last nor the first change in format for our accumulation of wisdom. The book is a fine and admirable device, but I do not doubt that clay tables and scrolls of papyrus had charms of their own.”